Candidates 2012: Daniel Rydberg seeks Oxnard council seat

During his run for Oxnard City Council, Daniel Rydberg has often cited the irony of having taught good government in Kosovo as a NATO peacekeeper while his own city struggled with good-governance issues.

Though city leaders have promoted transparency after the Ventura County district attorney's investigation into possible corruption in Oxnard, "It's really difficult for residents to understand what's going on," said Rydberg, 46, an engineer with the city's Public Works Department. "We just give out data, which is useless to most people."

If he wins a council seat, he'd have to quit his city job because of state law, he said.

The Oxnard native has Ventura County roots that go back to Caspar Borchard, a Conejo Valley pioneer in the late 1800s. His ancestors also helped build the Norwegian Grade section of Moorpark Road, he said.

He created a website called Men of Leisure, at http://www.menofleisure.com — and also established a now dissolved corporation — that might make some question his work ethic. The site encourages working less than 20 hours a week, mocks "cushy government jobs," boasts its share of bathroom humor and hawks T-shirts with slogans such as "Bikini Inspector" and "Top 10 Reasons Not to Work."

Rydberg said the effort is "obviously a joke," stemming from a period when he was a stay-at-home father. He came to appreciate the importance of downtime while in Europe with the National Guard, he said.

"I have two jobs and six kids. I definitely know how to work," he said.

Q: With 13 candidates on the ballot, why should voters choose you as one of their two picks?

A: "I've got a little bit of background with the government," Rydberg said, adding that he understands technology and economics and has experience in international good governance and nation building.

"If that's what you think the city needs, I think I'd be the best person to vote for," he said.

Q: Describe what power an individual City Council member has.

A: "You just have the power to bring issues up and make sure that they get to that level," he said. "People can come up and talk in front of the council, but (council members) don't necessarily do anything about it."

Q: How would you have voted on the SouthShore project and why? (The project is a 1,545-home development north of Hueneme Road that was approved on a 3-2 vote by the council in June 2011.)

A: Rydberg said he would have voted in favor of SouthShore, though he had reservations.

"I think it's way too dense," he said. "But if everybody agrees you want to have SOAR" — voter-approved boundaries meant to protect open space in much of Ventura County — "that's what you're going to end up with."

Q: What qualities make a good city manager?

A: The person would value competence, ongoing improvement and hold themselves and the city accountable, he said.

"Just a modern professional," Rydberg said. "I don't understand why it's so difficult, but apparently it's hard to find people who can act like mediocre business graduates."